Slipstream - December 2002

Hallett Club Racing School
By Doug Molny
Photo by Doug Molny
Day 1
Filled with anticipation and excitement we headed for the club
race in Oklahoma October 10. The four of us, all neophytes,
caravanned together. The ride from Dallas to Hallett was
longer than expected due to many construction delays...we
conversed via walkie talkie to pass the time, Noby Takahashi, Rocky
Johnson, Jorge Vargas and myself. We'd read about and researched
the track as this was to be our initiation into Club Racing.
We arrived at the track late Thursday afternoon around 4:30.
Promptly found our race port and pulled in. Hallett is a 1.8 mile
10 turn asphalt road racing track with 80' elevation changes.
Immediately after unloading, the race school participants were
told to check in and attend a 2-hour race school orientation
...the occasional turtle on the track . . .
meeting at the control tower. We were given a long list of subjects
to be covered in the 3-days, and we each received the newest copy
of Skip Barber's book on racing. Our instructor, John Bolcha,
started with a video presentation of the best line at speed around
the track and then broke down each corner. I counted about 35
people in the classroom, we were each assigned an instructor
strictly for advice and pointers, as the instructors were not
allowed in the car at anytime.
Spectacular site on track...is that “The Bitch?”
We discussed the topics to be covered including, turn-in,
track out points, flag stations, pit entry, exit, proper gearing,
different track surfaces, tire grip, passing lines inside and outside
of the school line, and the occasional turtle on the track. The
average times for Hallett are in the mid-1:30's running counterclockwise
with the fastest Porsches around 1:21. We talked about
escape routes, run-off areas, double apex, driving off line and the
art of passing anywhere you can get by safely, co-existing with
other drivers and who owns the corner. We were told how to drive
effectively, staying away from driving on the "ragged edge" which
I should have interpreted as "how to finish the race without
Photo by Doug Molny
breaking your car!" I will be quoting from some of the material
we were provided with the credits at the end of this article and
book recommendations.
Doug’s car was happy in its covered carport.
Day 2
Began at 8:00 AM in the classroom. We opened with one of
racing's most important issues the "concept of predictability"!
Then onto the race track, the 11 race students started out on the
grid with a dozen laps of "lead follow" around the track. Since
instructors may not be a passenger in the car this was the next
best way to learn the "ideal line" as most of us were unfamiliar
with this track. As we followed John around the track, the car
directly behind John would drop to the rear as we finished 1 full
lap so that each of us had a run in the front. We returned to the
classroom and talked about how important is was to keep the
RPM's up during the race and shifting at red-line.
An important rule in Club Racing is learning to be "assertive
not aggressive" as we progressed into talking about draft passing,
trail and threshold braking. Many factors come into play when
coming into a corner, making a conscious effort to ease off the
brakes while turning, and then being smooth back onto the
gas. Tire slip, the traction circle and line recovery made for an
excellent topic as getting back onto the ideal line which is very
important after a pass. During a PCA Club Race "blocking" is not
permitted although you are not expected to give up your position
easily. We concluded the morning class by setting up a well
formed grid and practiced side by side starts. This was fun! We
gained a great deal of knowledge, the right gear to start in, which
in my car is 2nd and when to shift and how to position yourself
for the first turn and find the most advantageous line while in a
battle for position into turn one.
After lunch we talked about "PCA style" racing, the main
thrust on how to pass and how to be passed. John Bolcha and
Bryan Henderson discussed 4-types of passes, 1. Under braking,
2. horsepower pass 3. draft pass 4. passing due to another's racer's
mistake. Racing is a mental activity and learning to plan your pass
makes for good sense racing. It was suggested that we practice
passing during the rest of the practice sessions. We were all so
interested in this information that the time seemed to really go by
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